All Articles: Yo-Kai Watch 2: Bony Spirits/Fleshy Souls

It’s another big week for the Nintendo Switch… because dozens of new titles (and a few new 3DS games) are now available to download through the Nintendo eShop.

Later this week, EA Sports will bring their soccer simulation FIFA 18 to the Switch on September 29. But beginning today, Sidebar’s “Golf RPG,” Golf Story, will tee off on the Switch eShop. It’ll be joined by monochromatic shooter Inversus Deluxe, picture puzzler Picross S, and co-op spaceship manager Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime (on October 3).

Over on the 3DS, Nintendo fans will be able Yo-Kai Watch 2: Psychic Specters on September 29 and Culdcept Revolt on October 3.

You can learn more about this week’s additions to the Nintendo eShop after the break. (more…)

EA Sports will bring FIFA 18 to the PS4, Xbox One, Switch, PS3, and Xbox 360. It’ll be joined on the pitch by Microsoft’s Forza Motorsport 7: Ultimate Edition, which Xbox One owners can pick up three days earlier than the launch of the standard edition.

There’s nothing standard about massive mechs, and Bandai Namco will bring Gundam Versus to the PS4 this week. NIS America will also deliver a wild new entry in the Danganronpa series, Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony for the PS4.

Nintendo published their annual financial report this morning, and the company gave us our best look yet at the Switch’s retail prospects, as well as reconfirmed several 2017 releases.

The big announcement today is that Nintendo has sold 2.74 million Switch consoles around the world as of March 31. Nintendo originally predicted that they’d sell two million around Switch consoles in March, so it’s safe to say they surpassed their goal. The consolemaker expects to sell ten million more Switch consoles before the start of their next fiscal year. If this prediction proves accurate, the Switch will have matched the total sales of the Wii U in a single year.

Moving on to games, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild has proven to be fairly popular, with total sales of 3.84 million copies sold (2.76 on the Switch and 1.08 on the Wii U). And don’t count out the 3DS just yet. According to Nintendo, Pokemon Sun and Moon combined to sell 15.44 million copies since they were released in November.

Nintendo closed out their report with the promise of a bright future, reiterating that all of their upcoming Switch and 3DS game are still on track to be released in 2017. Super Mario Odyssey and Fire Emblem Warriors are both still set for the Fall, and Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is still penciled in for a “TBA 2017” launch date.

Leading things off is Yo-Kai Watch 2: Bony Spirits and Yo-Kai Watch 2: Fleshy Souls, a pair of new 3DS games from Level-5. More than 350 troublemaking spirits will be added to the Yo-Kai universe in the sequel, and each game will include a batch of unique Yo-Kai. And Yo-Kai Watch fans will likely need all the help they can get, as players will have to travel back in time to save Springdale.

Also available for the 3DS this week is Azure Striker Gunvolt 2, the final featured title from Nintendo’s Nindies Summer Jam promotion. Developed by Inti Creates, Azure Striker Gunvolt 2 is a side-scrolling action/platformer that harkens back to the heyday of Super NES shooters.

However, if you were more of a Genesis fan in the early 90s, you grew up with Sonic the Hedgehog. And the Blue Blur is back this week in Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice, yet another 3DS game based on the new animated series.

Jumping over to the Wii U eShop, a pair of puzzling games are now available to download. First up, we’ve got Soul Axiom, a mysterious “cyber thriller” where players will have to unravel the mysteries of their digital afterlife to save the day. But a very different type of future can be glimpsed in Pikmin, the Wii original (which was itself a remake of the GameCube classic) that’s now available for the Wii U. Join Captain Olimar and his Pikmin pals and explore a strange new planet.

More information on all of these games (and a few other new releases) can be found after the break. (more…)

FIFA 17 will be available in stores this week for the PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One. In addition to a series of graphical upgrades and gameplay tweaks, the latest soccer simulation from EA Sports adds “The Journey,” a story-based single-player mode where players take control a teenager trying to make it in the Premier League.

Also new this week is Microsoft’s latest racing sim, Forza Horizon 3. The PC and Xbox One game recreates Australia as a playground for open-world racing, which players can dive into with more than 350 cars.

Away from the fast cars and furious footballers, Nintendo and Level-5 will release Yo-Kai Watch 2: Bony Spirits and Yo-Kai Watch 2: Fleshy Souls. The creature-collecting games will include hundreds of new Yo-Kai, invisible spirits believed to exist out in the world. But with the game’s Yo-Kai Watch, players can see these supernatural creatures, and capture them.

Keeping with the otherworldly theme, 2K Games will bring XCOM 2 to the PS4 and Xbox One this week. After debuting on the PC earlier this year, the publisher is expanding the strategy game’s reach to new-generation consoles… and not a moment too soon. The alien invaders have enslaved humanity in the sequel and it’s up to players to guide the XCOM to victory against a foe that’s taken control of the Earth.

While the enemies of Dead Rising 2 are a bit dumber than a race of hyper-advanced aliens, they’re no less dangerous. Available this week for the PS4 and Xbox One, Dead Rising 2 was originally released for the PS3 and Xbox 360 in 2010, but the re-release will still put a ravenous horde of undead between motocross racer Chuck Greene and the anti-zombie cure he needs for his daughter.

Hopefully, Chuck can avoid those zombies using Sonic-like speed, but a Blue Blur will be busy with Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice, which will be released this week for the 3DS.

Finally this week, Microsoft is cramming a free copy of Minecraft in with their newest Xbox One S 500GB Console Bundle. So if you’re interested in picking up an Xbox One S, and you love Minecraft, it’s a fairly good deal.

Nintendo is once again bringing their popular Nindies@Night pre-show event to PAX West this year. From 8:00 PM to midnight on Thursday, September 1, Nintendo will take over the EMP Museum on Fifth Ave to showcase more than a dozen “Nindies” for the 3DS and Wii U:

Games Scheduled to Appear At Nindies@Night

Axiom Verge (Wii U)

FAST Racing Neo: Neo Future Pack (Wii U)

Jotun: Valhalla Edition (Wii U)

Severed (Wii U)

Shantae: Half-Genie Hero (Wii U)

SteamWorld Heist (Wii U)

World to the West (Wii U)

Azure Striker Gunvolt 2 (3DS)

Gurumin: A Monsterous Adventure (3DS)

Noitu Love: Devolution (3DS)

Punch Club (3DS)

Runbow Pocket (3DS)

Severed (3DS)

Nintendo will host playable demos of all their upcoming Nindies (along with visits from the developers) during the convention at the PAX West Indie Lounge in Room 612. Like always, this year’s PAX West convention will be held on the first weekend in September at Seattle’s Washington State Convention Center.

During the course of the convention, Nintendo will also operate a second booth in the South Hall (Booth 2335) with several other playable demos including Dragon Quest VII: Fragments of the Forgotten Past and Yo-Kai Watch 2, both of which will be released for the 3DS this September. For congoers looking to learn more, a Panel Discussion with the developers of Dragon Quest VII will be held on Sunday, September 4.

“Having [PAX West] essentially in Nintendo’s backyard and getting a chance to connect with our fans makes it all the more special for us,” said Doug Bowser, Nintendo of America’s appropriately-named Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing.

I’ve got bad news for anyone hoping to try out The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild during this year’s San Diego Comic-Con… Nintendo won’t have the highly-anticipated game available at their Play Nintendo Family Lounge at the Marriott Marquis San Diego Marina next door.

However, the consolemaker will have 15 other demos on hand, including five 3DS titles (Monster Hunter Generations, Metroid Prime: Federation Force, Style Savvy: Fashion Forward, Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice, and Yo-Kai Watch 2) that won’t be released until later this year:

3DS

Monster Hunter Generations (Available July 15)

Metroid Prime: Federation Force (Available August 19)

Style Savvy: Fashion Forward (Available August 19)

Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice (Available September 27)

Yo-Kai Watch 2 (Available September 30)

Yo-Kai Watch

Yoshi’s New Island

Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D

Kirby: Planet Robobot

Mario Kart 7

Pokemon Omega Ruby / Pokemon Alpha Sapphire

New Super Mario Bros. 2

Wii U

Splatoon

Mario Kart 8

Pokken Tournament

The Play Nintendo Family Lounge will also be home to tournaments, Pokemon meetups, a Yo-Kai Watch voice actor panel, and much more. The full list of events can be found after the break, and don’t forget that the Play Nintendo Family Lounge is free and open to the public from July 21 through July 24. (more…)

The Yo-Kai are getting ready for their second American invasion, because the mischievous spirits at the center of Level-5’s Yo-Kai Watch series will make an encore appearance on the 3DS this Fall in Yo-Kai Watch 2. Set to launch on September 30, Yo-Kai Watch 2 will be available in two versions (Bony Spirits and Fleshy Souls) and add more than 100 new Yo-Kai to the game’s universe:

Already a huge hit in Japan, the sequel to the first smash hit, which is once again developed by Level-5, offers the same deep RPG gameplay and wacky adventures as the first game. The new adventure also offers many new areas to explore outside of Springdale, more than 100 new Yo-kai, a new-and-improved in-game Yo-Kai Watch and even the ability to travel back in time! Yo-Kai Watch 2 will also launch with two versions, Yo-Kai Watch 2: Bony Spirits and Yo-Kai Watch 2: Fleshy Souls, each featuring rare Yo-Kai that can only be found in their respective games.

Fans of the Yo-Kai Watch television series also have reason to be excited this morning, as Disney announced the second season will begin airing on Disney XD this Summer. And in case you missed it, you can catch up with the first season on Netflix.